New York City Marks Best-Ever Year For Tourism

NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 24: Tourists gather on the observation deck of the Empire State Building after it re-opened to the public near the scene of a shooting August 24, 2012 in New York City. Police said 58-year-old Jeffrey Johnson shot and killed Steven Ercolino, the 41-year-old vice president of Hazan Imports and a former co-worker of the shooter. during an altercation at 10 W. 33rd St. with a .45 caliber handgun. At least eight other people were wounded, at least some according to police by the New York City Police officers firing at the suspected shooter, and were taken to local hospitals to be treated for what New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg described as non-life threatening injuries. (Photo by Tourists on the observation deck of the Empire State Building (file/credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A record number of tourists visited New York City in 2012, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced on Monday.

“We welcomed an all-time high of 52 million visitors,” Bloomberg said.

That translated to about $37 billion in direct spending by visitors, according to the city.

“Hurricane Sandy didn’t hurt the numbers. The world economic problems in Europe, where a lot of our tourists come from, didn’t seem to hurt the numbers,” Bloomberg said. “This is the place where it’s happening.”